Theft of ceiling-mounted audio/visual projectors, videocassette recorders, televisions and other types of audio/visual units (hereinafter “AV units”) from public institutions has become increasingly common in recent years. Millions of dollars are lost each year, particularly in schools, daycare centers and other educational facilities, due to the theft and/or damage of ceiling and/or wall-mounted AV units, in particular, projectors. The common procedure is for intruders to ascertain when the vulnerable time periods are for projector-equipped classrooms, then simply remove the projector from its mounting column using the quick service disconnect and carrying the projector off campus in large book bags etc. In larger campuses, many classrooms are not used, providing intruders with ample opportunities to enter the classrooms and remove the projectors. Although efforts have been made to secure the projectors by enclosing them in housings, thieves are willing to attack the projector mount both above and below the ceiling from which the projector is suspended. Thieves generally break into the facility and simply separate the projector from its ceiling mount using common pipe or tube cutting implements. The intruder can file into the cylindrical metal rod that suspends the projector from the ceiling and simply walk away with the projector enclosure and the projector housed therein.
Ceiling-mounted projectors are typically suspended from the ceiling without any type of mounting housing or jacket. Typically, ceiling-mounted projectors are mounted to a ceiling column with a flange at each end. The projector is generally secured to the bottom-mounting flange with small machine screws and inserts molded into the projector case. Other designs provide bulky 2 ft.×2 ft. cages with a cylindrical pipe that offer no protection against thieves who simply unscrew 1 or 2 screws and use a pipe cutter to cut the cylindrical tube. It requires little effort or imagination for one, with the proper tools, to simply “snip through” the exposed cylindrical metal pipe, leaving the projector enclosure. Once removed from the facility, any locks on the enclosure can easily be broken into and the projector removed. Prior art ceiling-mounted projector systems do not incorporate safety mechanisms to deter and prevent theft other than perhaps a simple, cage-like enclosure, which does little to stop theft. What is needed is a security system that prevents theft of AV units or at least forces an intruder to spend an inordinate amount of time attempting to separate the AV unit enclosure from its mount, so that authorities can intervene.
It is, therefore, desirable to provide an AV unit security apparatus that deters theft of an audio/visual projector, television, VCR or the like by enclosing the projector in a rigid protection jacket and coupling the jacket to a ceiling or wall-mounted security link, whereby the security link covers the mounting column extending from the ceiling to protect against the theft and/or destruction of AV unit via the use of tube or pipe cutters.
It is also desirable to provide an AV unit security apparatus that prevents theft of ceiling and/or wall-mounted projectors while still allowing full rotation, movement and tilting of the projector within a housing so as not to inhibit the projector's proper use.